Assembly Bill A5971

2021-2022 Legislative Session

Establishes the "tenant opportunity to purchase act"

download bill text pdf

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee


  • Introduced
    • In Committee Assembly
    • In Committee Senate
    • On Floor Calendar Assembly
    • On Floor Calendar Senate
    • Passed Assembly
    • Passed Senate
  • Delivered to Governor
  • Signed By Governor

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2021-A5971 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Senate Version of this Bill:
S3157
Current Committee:
Assembly Housing
Law Section:
Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law
Laws Affected:
Add Art 7-C §§799 - 799-w, RPAP L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:
A3353, S221

2021-A5971 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes the "tenant opportunity to purchase act"; prevents the displacement of lower-income tenants in New York and preserves affordable housing by providing an opportunity for tenants to own or remain renters in the properties in which they reside.

2021-A5971 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5971
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               March 4, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. MITAYNES -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Housing
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the  real  property  actions and proceedings law, in
   relation to establishing the tenant opportunity to purchase act
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section  1.  Short  title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
 the "tenant opportunity to purchase act".
   § 2. Legislative findings. The  legislature  finds  that  there  is  a
 significant  unmet need for affordable housing for low-income people and
 families. Almost half of all New York State tenants -- in both urban and
 suburban areas -- are rent-burdened. In the Hudson Valley and the South-
 ern Tier, and in non-municipal Green and Suffolk counties, more than 60%
 of New Yorkers are paying over 30% of their income  toward  rent.  More-
 over,  between  2012  and  2017,  New  York State lost more than 160,000
 affordable rental homes, almost 55,000 of them outside of New York City,
 Westchester and Long Island. This has led to an increase in  an  already
 escalating  homelessness  crisis.  According to HUD's 2019 Point in Time
 Estimate, approximately 79,000 people were homeless in New York State.
   The legislature recognizes that New York's rental housing  market  has
 become  even  more  threatened  by  the  outbreak  of novel coronavirus,
 COVID-19, which, as of the date of this  legislation,  created  destabi-
 lized  housing,  loss  of employment and income, closure of business and
 schools and financial insecurity in the state of New York. The  legisla-
 ture finds that the loss of employment, illness and deaths caused by the
 COVID-19  outbreak have rendered many individuals and families unable to
 pay for the costs of housing and other life necessities. U.S.    Census'
 Household  Pulse  survey shows that in the last week of May 2020, 29% of
 all NYS tenants showed little to no confidence in  being  able  to  make
 their June rent payment. The share was higher among Black tenants (41%),
 Latinx tenants (41%) and tenants earning less than $50K (34%).
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

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